35 Vehicles in 4 Years — NEMT in the fast lane!! | NEMT Experts Podcast Episode 106
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In Episode 106 of the NEMT Experts Podcast, we talk with Corey Busta, the founder of Lift Assist https://chicoliftassist.com/ in Chico, California, on how he's grown his NEMT business to a large fleet in a short timespan.
Top 3 takeaways:https://chicoliftassist.com/
1) What Gets You to 5 Vans Won’t Get You to 35Early-stage hustle does not scale.Corey went from:
- Excel sheets → dispatch software
- Solo admin → full team (dispatchers + office staff)
- Parking at home → multiple office moves
Every stage required new systems, new tools, new thinking. If you don’t evolve your operations, growth will break you.
2) Brokers = Fuel for Rapid Growth
The real acceleration came when Corey tapped into brokers and Medicaid.
Facilities gave stability
Brokers gave volume
Medicaid (ModiveCare) unlocked scale
Today:
~90% of trips come from brokers
If you want to grow fast in NEMT, you need access to consistent ride flow.
3) Growth Creates New Problems (Fast)
Scaling isn’t just “more vans” — it’s more complexity everywhere.
Corey dealt with:
Outgrowing offices (3 moves in 2 years)
Hiring at speed
Systems that couldn’t keep up
Infrastructure lagging behind demand
Lesson: Growth is a constant rebuild.
You’re not scaling a business… you’re rebuilding it every 6–12 months.
Top 3 quotes:
Corey Busta
“What worked when we had a couple vehicles… none of that translated to where we are now.”
Interpreter: Your early playbook will expire. Upgrade your systems before they become your bottleneck. Corey Busta
“Just get started… a lot of what I learned was trial and error.”
Corey Busta
“I went with the first insurance broker… and later cut my premiums in half.”
